How Nicholas Ord started their logo design journey

Company name

Red Hot Yoga

Overview

Red Hot Yoga will be a Hot Yoga studio, with the practice being conducted in a room heated up to 40 degrees centigrade. We want to provide a space where people can come to focus on their yoga, to work hard and sweat hard. The studio will be an escape from the everyday stresses of modern living, a place where people can come and restore vitality to both body and mind.
What we intend to offer is an effective and proven method for increasing general well-being, including aiding concentration and mental alertness; increasing cardiovascular efficiency and endurance; decreasing blood pressure; improving physical posture; improving balance and increasing range of motion in joints.
We want to create a brand that tells people that whatever their fitness level or lifestyle, from couch potato to professional athlete, including Hot Yoga in their life will improve their physical and mental state.
Please do not include any spiritual references in the logo, as these can be divisive and we are keen to promote the ethos that Hot Yoga is for everybody, not just supple young fitness fanatics and spiritual gurus!

Tell us a bit about who you are and the people you reach

The studio will focus on three specific groups:
Middle Income Urban Professionals: This group is the core segment of potential students for the studio. Their demographic characteristics are as follows: Age 26-40; Sex: 30% male, 70% female; Family income: £30,000 to £50,000
Upper Income: The upper income customer is a secondary target group. Their demographic characteristics are as follows: Age: 40-60; Sex: 30% male, 70% female; Family income: £60,000+
Student: The student customer is a secondary target group. Their demographic characteristics are as follows: Age: 18-25; Sex: 30% male, 70% female; Family income: Variable
The studio will be in a city centre location, within walking distance of the main train and bus stations. As such, we intend to target both local workers and commuters. Most of our target market will be health food and exercise conscious.
Our target market is both health and image conscious. We want to create a brand that incorporates healthy living with style. Our studio will be finished to a high standard and we hope to create a warm, inviting atmosphere in a space dedicated to the mind and body.

Requirements

The sensory element of the studio is very important (i.e. look, touch and feel). We have a colour scheme of reds, greys and natural woods (browns).
It would be great if the name of the studio can be included in full: “Red Hot Yoga”. The colours should be warm and natural. Obviously, as the name represents, something along the lines of fire or heat, etc. This is not set in stone by any means, so please do let your imaginations run wild!
In terms of concept, we would like to somehow get across that a Yoga practice is very much you and your yoga mat. The instructor is there to guide you, but cannot do it for you. A part of the benefit of regular yoga practice is the realisation of what you can achieve with a little dedication and some guidance, regardless of your starting point. Yoga is non-competitive, except within oneself (doing it a little better than you did last time is the challenge). If there is any way of getting this across in a logo, so much the better!
The logo will be used as signage across the windows of the studio, so will need to look right in very large size as well as down to business card size. We are after something that is both striking and subtle, which does sound like a contradiction! What we mean is something that people will notice, but is tasteful and stylish, so that it could not be described as ‘in your face’.